


One Regret

by chessdaze



Category: Twisted-Wonderland (Video Game)
Genre: Canon Rewrite, Gen, I just wanted more from post episode 2 so I guess I gotta do it myself, Illnesses, Scars, Vomiting, a little bit, ruggie is demi-male so uses he/him and they/them pronouns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-06
Updated: 2020-04-07
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:27:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23504590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chessdaze/pseuds/chessdaze
Summary: “What happens when you use your power on people, Leona-senpai?!”“I..” He grunts and Jack lessens his grip as he realizes he might be making it difficult for Leona to speak. “I don’t know.”“You don’t know?!”“I’ve never...used it on someone before.”Leona might have one regret, about the trouble he had caused.
Comments: 9
Kudos: 81





	1. Repercussions

**Author's Note:**

> So uh....I'm in Twisted Wonderland hell right now. 
> 
> A couple of things to note:  
> I headcanon Ruggie as demi-male so his pronouns will switch from he/him and they/them throughout the piece, I'm sorry if it confuses anyone.  
> I like to think that Ruggie knows Cheka and has met him before so I'm rewriting that bit too. 
> 
> This is probably going to be a twoshot, Enjoy!

_ This couldn’t be happening… _

Ruggie was lucky to get out of the locker room when he did. Being around his fellow dormmates was so depressing right now. Despite the small patch they had made over the elephant in the room, they were all still avoiding Leona. He was avoiding Leona. But this went beyond avoiding. He had coughed out saying he needed to get some fresh air and booked it. 

He’s somewhere behind the bleachers, he’s not sure what’s around him completely anymore. Their head spun, their balance was way off, and they leaned against one of the metal beams of the bleachers before sliding down to the ground.

They coughed and coughed, and eventually, they vomited. It’s unpleasant - but a familiar feeling. Like when they would eat too much after having starved themselves for so long. Too rich, or simply too much, food would make them sick in a familiar manner. But at least, in that case, it was food he tasted on his tongue after the fact. But this was different. It wasn’t food coming out of his mouth, but sludge. Sand mixed with saliva and acid. 

They hiccuped, only now realizing that they were crying and the salty taste of their tears was mixing into this unpleasant concoction. They were shaking like a leaf, there was no way they could go back to the locker room now, let alone get back onto the field.

But damn it, even if it was guaranteed they were going to lose - he wanted to try. Leona might not give a shit anymore, but he certainly did. He wanted, he needed, to get back on the field-

A weak laugh left his lips before another pile of sludge escaped his lips.  _ Fuck _ . He shouldn’t try to kid himself like this. There was no way he could get back on the field now.

Certain that nothing else was going to come out, they finally raised their head, a cough or two more leaving his lips, tears staining his eyes and face. What a sight he must look like! Another pained laugh left his lips as he fell onto his back, careful not to put his feet in the sludge pile and curl up on the dirt. 

_ ‘You’re just a hyena from the trashy slums- _ ’ maybe that’s why the ground is so comfortable. They could use a nap…..

They rubbed at their left arm, a hiss leaving stained lips as fingers brushed over the newly scarred skin. Even with the bandage, he had put around it, it was so sensitive…. It was as if they could break a piece of their skin off and it would dissolve into dusk. They shuddered at the prospect and the reality that it could very well happen if they kept messing with it. So they pulled the sleeve of the white shirt down a little more, thankful he always wore layers no matter the uniform so it didn’t look odd that he was covering up such a thing now. 

He wonders if the scars will ever go away, or if he’ll have fissures growing up his arm, onto his shoulder and almost around his neck, forever? It would make them look more  _ ‘manly’  _ for sure, but the thought makes them pull on their sleeve once more. They didn’t care too much about the masculinity of it all, they were more worried about Leona’s thoughts on it. 

Heh, should he even care about Leona at this point? He hadn’t forgiven the lion, far from it really. But seeing Leona take a beating during the last round or two had been therapeutic, and most of his previous anger had faded. He honestly just wanted a break, to be able to talk to Leona for a moment. Alone. 

But between everyone’s ‘revenge’ on the dorm, and this scar, and sudden sickness...

He could  _ really  _ use a nap….

* * *

“Where is he?” Jack mumbled as he left the locker room, sniffing the air for some kind of trace of his senior. The next match was starting, and Leona was stalling while he went to fetch Ruggie. That wouldn’t work for long, he had to find him-

“Jack?”

The wolf looked over to see Trey and Jamil, the former still on crutches and the latter with his hands full of food. By the looks of it, he was simply helping Trey get snacks. “Trey-senpai, Jamil-senpai.” Jack said, walking over to them. 

“Isn’t the next match starting?” Jamil asked.

“Yes but Ruggie-senpai is missing.” He explained, rubbing at the side of his head. “Leona-senpai is stalling and - you haven’t seen him have you?”

“No, we were just coming back from the food stalls,” Trey said, pointing towards the food in Jamil’s hands. “But he wasn’t there.”

“Well that crosses off that idea,” Jack grumbled. Everyone new Ruggie was a glutton, he had thought of the food stalls first, honestly. But it looks like that was a bust. He sniffs the air again, he should know the other’s scent by now-

_Ah_ , there it was. But...But what was mixed in with it? It was awful. Like something rotting. Jack quickly covered his mouth, trying not to gag, coughing harshly as the two upperclassmen looked at him with concern.

“Are you alright?” Trey asked, reaching out to put a hand on Jack’s shoulder.

He can only manage to nod, but the two don’t seem convinced. He shrugs off Trey’s hand, with a rushed excuse to leave, he quickly takes off in direction of the smell. He wishes he could keep his hand over his nose because this other smell was making him dizzy and sick to his stomach, but he had to find Ruggie, and soon. The awful smell mixed in with their own made Jack run faster, debating changing forms just so he could move quicker. Where was he? Where was he?!

He skids to a halt when the smell is too much to take, they had to be around here somewhere! The wolf holds the side of his head, trying not to faint from the smell alone as he looks around. Where? Where-

“Ruggie-senpai!” Jack couldn’t help but shout as he finally laid eyes on the older. He rushed over to the hyena’s collapsed form, and as he got closer he saw the source of the foul smell but tried not to let his eyes linger for very long lest it makes him feel even sicker than it already was. But he did notice one thing, it wasn’t normal vomit. What was wrong with Ruggie? “Ruggie-senpai. Ruggie-senpai!” Jack continued, trying to wake the other up, lifting the hyena’s head up onto his lap as he kneeled down next to him.

“Nhnn- N-Not so lo-loud…” Their voice was hoarse, Jack almost couldn’t hear him. They weren’t opening their eyes still, and besides a small twitch from their arm, they hadn’t moved at all. The color had drained from their face as well. Assuming the worst, Jack did the only thing he could think of and picked the smaller student into his arms. “H-Hey-” Ruggie’s eyes finally opened, puffy and red, they had obviously been crying at some point. 

“I’m taking you to the infirmary.” Without saying another word, he rushed in that direction. He could feel a hand weakly gripping at his shirt, but he tried not to think about how bad the state of his senior was. 

“Oi! Jack! There you- EH?! Ruggie-senpai?!” Two of the other savanaclaw team members had stepped out of the locker room just as he was rushing passed. They obviously saw Ruggie’s condition and so he didn’t bother stopping and kept running. He could hear them shout, but he didn’t care too much for what they said. He had to be quick.

As he was reaching the edge of the field area he couldn’t help but hear the announcer over the intercom announcing that Savanaclaw would be playing with a smaller team. He winced, making a note to apologize to Leona later before continuing on his mission. 

Reaching the infirmary didn’t take too long, thankfully it was located close to the field - smart planning. “Excuse me!” He said, kicking open the door. Of course, there were others already here. The tournament was likely the infirmary's busiest time of year. It didn’t take long for a nurse to approach them, and Jack finally deflated a little, shoulders relaxed but the grip on Ruggie tightening. “I found him passed out behind the bleachers. I think he threw up.” He’s directed to put Ruggie down on one of the empty beds, and he does so quickly and carefully. 

“Nhn-” Ruggie groaned before sinking into the comfortable bed. He’s barely able to keep his eyes open, but he manages to look up at Jack for a split second. 

Jack doesn’t think he’s ever seen such a look in his senior’s eyes before. Even when Leona had succumbed to overblot, Ruggie’s eyes held a fire in them. But now, that fire was extinguished, and Ruggie looked more helpless than Jack would ever have thought he would see the older. Before he can say anything, he’s being pushed aside by a nurse. It was out of his hands, for now, he shouldn’t get in the nurse's way. Quietly he left the infirmary, after stopping to check on the one who had knocked out during the exhibition match. Looks like they were still out cold, he would check on them later too. With a heavy sigh, Jack left the infirmary and started walking back to the field. The match was probably over by now, considering Savanaclaw was playing with a smaller team. He wouldn’t be surprised if they lost.

His mind kept drifting back to how he had found Ruggie, and his stomach turned uncomfortably. How had Ruggie managed to hide that he felt that bad? Sure, everyone on the team was a little bit off but surely someone would have noticed, surely Leona would have noticed-

Or did he notice, and not care? A growl left his lips as his footsteps became more like stomps as he continued his way back to the field. None of this would be happening if Leona had just played by the rules to begin with! If he and Ruggie hadn’t tried to scheme their way through the tournament, just to beat Diasomnia! 

The footsteps slowed once more and he sighed. No use getting mad about it still, it was over, right? They were getting the punishment they deserved, and there’s no way they’d be able to pull off such a plan twice. Everything should be fine, given time.

But Ruggie’s collapsed figure and then them in the infirmary bed still plagued his thoughts. The more he thought about it, the more his head hurt, the more he was reminded of that awful smell. He practically has to cover his nose at the mere memory of that smell. What had that been, really? Sure, he had vomited but… 

Footsteps slow to a stop right outside the locker room. It wasn’t normal. Now that he remembered it, there was something all over Ruggie’s face too, something he had been too blinded by worry to really make note of.

Something...that almost seemed like... _ sand _ ?

Jack’s heart felt like it stopped for a moment, and his breath caught in his throat. There was no way….was Leona’s magic still affected him? Ruggie was the closest to Leona and the only one who was physically grabbed by him. So it was possible but…

“Jack.” The wolf’s head snaps up, seeing Leona leaning against the door frame of the locker room. He looked worse for wear like the doorframe was the only thing keeping him upright. “Where the fuck were you.”

“I was taking Ruggie-senpai to the infirmary. He collapsed outside.”

Leona stared at him for a moment, and Jack felt like he was being interrogated as if Leona was trying to look for a lie in his statement. But eventually, the lion sighed, and just slumped harder against the doorframe. “Some idiots told me but I wasn’t sure if they were telling the truth.”

“They don’t have any reason to lie about something like that.”

“Mhmm.” Leona looked back into the locker room before over at Jack again. “We’re up against Diasomnia next.”

“Wh- you mean we’re still in the tournament?”

“Who do you take us for? Of course we’re still in.” He tsked, pushing himself off of the doorframe. “Ruggie’s gonna hate that they missed it, so work twice as hard for them.”

“Y-Yes sir!” Jack replied, suddenly standing straighter. Leona seemed to chuckle at him before starting to make his way back into the locker room. Quickly, Jack reached out and grabbed him by the wrist. “Wait, Leona-senpai.”

“What? Let go of me.” The dorm leader sounded annoyed, but he didn’t try to pull his arm out of the other’s grip.

“I need to ask you something,” Jack said, giving a small tug to pull the dorm leader outside of the locker room. He dropped the other’s wrist afterward, and Leona rubbed it as he leaned against the wall for support this time.

“You got a lot of nerve dragging me around, but what is it?”

“Your magic...have you ever used it on a person before Ruggie-senpai?”

The glare he got was expected. It had only been a few hours since the strange encounter, since that battle, since Leona had nearly turned everything around him to sand - including Ruggie. Leona looks away, and that causes Jack’s blood to boil.

“Answer me!”

“Why should I?” 

Jack growled and stepped forward, grabbing the leader by his shirt. If the other hadn’t been in such a weak condition, he knows he would have paid dearly for such a move. But the players weren’t after him on the field, everyone seemed to know he opposed Leona’s schemes and helped resolve the issue, so he wasn’t receiving as much punishment on the field.

But he doesn’t think he has ever seen Leona in such a weak state, now that he was this close.

“Let go.”

“Answer the question.” 

“Why do you care?” Leona said, grabbing hold of Jack’s wrist. Even for being in such a weak state, the claws digging into his wrist hurt like hell. But it only made Jack tighten his grip.

“Ruggie-senpai was throwing up  **_sand_ ** .” The claws seem to stop their penetration, and Jack takes the opportunity of shock to shove Leona’s back against the wall. Leona grunted, likely seeing stars for a moment since his head hit the wall, but Jack continued without hesitation. “What happens when you use your power on people, Leona-senpai?!”

“I..” He grunts and Jack lessons his grip as he realizes he might be making it difficult for Leona to speak. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?!” 

“I’ve never...used it on someone before.” 

Once again the anger boils in Jack’s blood. So he had no idea what would happen if he used it on someone, and yet he used it on the one person who had been supporting him all along?! With a growl, he pulls his hand back. Leona slumps further onto the wall and keeps his eyes everywhere but Jack’s. With each moment his anger only rises, but he bites it back. Now wasn’t the time to lose his cool, especially with the announcer screaming over the speakers about the next match. 

“You sure you don’t want to call this off?”

“Ha?” 

“You can barely stand, Leona-senpai.”

Just to prove that he could, Leona pushed himself off of the wall. But it didn’t help his case much at all. He was still barely standing. “I can stand, and play, just fine.”

“We won’t last even a few minutes.”

“It’s enough,” Leona said, starting towards the locker room. “Ruggie would kill us both if we just forfeited right now.”

“Heh, you’re right about that.” Jack started walking next to Leona, putting a hand on his back when the older stumbled. “But are you-”

“Shut up and get on the field, pup.”

“Yes sir…”

* * *

Ruggie groans as he stirs awake again. He had been told to try to rest, but he couldn’t seem to get more than a couple of minutes at a time. Maybe it’s because they could hear the announcer from here, and part of them was still somewhat paying attention to the tournament despite his body definitely not being in the condition to play anymore. He tries to sit up fully, but one of the nurses is quick to push them back down. “Can I..get...some water…” He managed to mumble at least. That seemed to satisfy the nurse at least, and she left to grab him a glass. 

He sighed and looked around the infirmary, only to be met mostly with glares. Right. He had helped put some people in here, both before and during the tournament. He huffs and looks away from them. Man, people could really hold a grudge! He couldn’t blame them, though. He’ll just sit here and take it.

“DIASOMNIA WINS!”

Ruggie signed at the announcement that blasted so loud over the speakers that everyone could hear it with clarity. No one was surprised in the slightest, but it still pissed him off. They could have won this year, if only….

The nurse returns with the water, and Ruggie drowns the thoughts in it as he drinks it a little bit too fast, coughing a moment later and getting scolded by the nurse. He shoves the glass back at her and lays on his right side, ignoring anything else she was trying to nag him about. 

_ Leona’s probably mad that I wasn’t there. Damn it, I’m mad I wasn’t there! _ After all the work he did, he went and passed out before the final match! Even if he knew they weren’t going to win, he had wanted to try and he didn’t even get to do that much. He grabs at his hair for a moment, trying to swallow back the anger and self-pity.

But all he could taste was sand on his tongue. 

The sudden realization had him coughing again, and his hand went from his hair to his mouth to cover it up. He can feel sand being spat out onto his hand and closed his eyes. There really was something wrong with him, wasn’t there? Fuck. He blinked back tears, he refused to cry when there were so many other people in the infirmary. 

He wiped his hand against the side of the bed, moving to lay on his back. His left arm was still throbbing too - and by the looks of it, the nurse hadn’t noticed the bandage thanks to his clothes. Good, they’ll keep it that way. They can deal with that later. Their eyes are about to close again when the door to the infirmary opens with a loud thud. He sighed, waiting for whichever poor soul was to take the only free spot left - the bed next to him. Maybe then he’ll get some more sleep-

“Ruggie.” 

His eyes snapped open and he looked up, seeing Leona being supported by Jack. 

“Shit, you look terrible,” Ruggie said before he could stop himself. It wasn’t a lie either. There were more than a few bruises that were going to take a while to heal up, a few scratches here and there, not to mention the other’s hair was an absolute disaster. 

Leona chuckled, though winced shortly after. “Yeah well, you don’t look a lot better.” Jack helped lower Leona onto the bed before going to grab the nurse. Leona sat hunched over, probably the only comfortable position for him right now, as he tried to fix his hair. “So what happened to you?”

“Dunno,” Ruggie answered a little too quickly. “Felt dizzy and then I guess I passed out. Maybe I was dehydrated.” 

Leona stared at him a little bit too long but didn’t comment on it as he finally laid back on the bed. “We lost.”

“I heard.”

Leona looked as if he wanted to say something. Ruggie knew that look all too well. Like when he was talking to his family over the phone. He always held back what he really wanted to say. Just as it looked like he might speak up, the nurse was by his bedside. Ruggie sighed, looking away as the nurse examined the dorm leader. He wished he could turn to lay on his left side, back towards the other, but there was no way he could mess with his arm like that-

“You doing okay, Ruggie-senpai?” Jack was by his bedside now, giving some stupid puppy-dog-eyed look at him. Ruggie couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

“Yeah, Yeah I’m fine.”

“You sure?” 

Ruggie’s eyebrow twitched. “I could use some more water if you wanna get me some.” He said, pointing to the glass on the table by the bed.

“Of course! Right away.” Jack quickly took the glass and left, thankfully.

Ruggie sighed, rubbing at the side of his head. The stupid wolf was going to give him a headache. Plus he really didn’t want Jack to go and start asking questions with Leona right here. Even if he was distracted by the nurse right now. Jack comes back all too quickly though, so Ruggie stalls for time by trying to drink slowly, despite the urge to try and rinse the sand out of his mouth. 

He shoves the glass back at Jack when he’s done, mumbling about getting some more rest. Jack didn’t seem to argue against that at least and simply went to go put the glass away. He looks over at Leona, who was finally not being overshadowed by the nurse. He looks like he’s on the verge of passing out too. The two of them locked eyes for a moment, and Ruggie could only manage a toothy grin before he closed his eyes. Best not overthink things for now. They’ll talk later. 

The two of them were fast asleep before Jack returned.

* * *

“I finally found you, Uncle!”

Everyone saw how Leona’s eyes went wide at the sudden high-pitched voice. But they probably didn’t know that Ruggie’s eyes went just as wide. What was Cheka doing here-?! 

Well maybe they should have expected it, Cheka loved watching magift - and the tournament was the biggest broadcast of it aside from professional showings. Still, why was he attending today’s tournament? He could have watched it easily back home. Could it be...this is why Leona wanted to try so hard? Because his family was attending this year’s game? 

“Uncle Ruggie!” Ruggie sucked in a breath as Cheka seemed to finally notice his presence.

“Hey, squirt.” He was quick to sit up before Cheka could sit on his stomach as he had sat on Leona’s.

“Un-Uncle Ruggie?” Jack seemed to get more confused by the second, and if it didn’t hurt so much to laugh he would have done so. 

“Why weren’t you in the final match? Did you get hurt?”

“Yeah.”

“I was looking forward to seeing you more!! You’ll teach me how to ride a broom right? Right?!” Cheka climbed onto his legs, which didn't hurt as much as his arm, but they were still pretty bruised up and he hissed slightly at the feeling.

“Yeah, Yeah, I’ll teach you when you’re older.” He’s just as helpless as Leona was against this kid. Which was saying something, because Ruggie was actually good with children. One of his part-time jobs was babysitting after all- or it had been before he started attending the school. 

“But I wanna learn now!”

“Oi, stop that Cheka. Didn’t he just tell you he got hurt?” Leona leaned over, picking the child up by the back of his shirt. Cheka flailed a bit as Leona repositioned him to the end of the bed instead.

“Sorry, Uncle Ruggie.”

“Don’t worry ‘bout it.” He said, reaching out to ruffle the kid’s hair. Cheka smiled and laughed, leaning into the touch. 

“Okay, but why does he call  _ you  _ Uncle?” Ace finally asked the question on the collective first year’s mind. 

“He said I could!” Cheka announced the answer with a laugh, holding onto Ruggie’s wrist and keeping his hand captive now. “It’s nice that Uncle Leona has such a nice retainer!”

“Retainer?!” The first years seem to collectively shout.

“How many times do I have to say it - I’m not his retainer!” Ruggie said, attempting to pull his hand free. At least it wasn’t his more injured arm. Any further words were cut off by a noise no one expected to hear. 

Leona was _laughing_ , genuinely and wholeheartedly. It had been such a long time since they had heard it that they stopped their struggling against the young heir to look over at him. It didn’t last long, as it probably hurt more for him to laugh than for them at this point, but it was enough. Ruggie’s shoulders somehow felt lighter, the sand in their mouth didn’t taste as bad, and they are letting a smile of their own come to their face. 

“Hey, this is your fault, you say something!” Ruggie said, grabbing his pillow with his free hand. Despite the pain in his arm, he threw the pillow at Leona and hit him square in the face. The others in the room seem to gasp, but Cheka could only laugh. Leona pulls the pillow off of his face and gives a glare, but Ruggie knew him well enough to know there was no real malice behind it. 

“Hey Ruggie, you look tired.” Leona stood up, and Ruggie could only squeak out a  _ ‘don’t _ !’ before he was bringing the pillow down on Ruggie's face and pushing him back against the bed. 

Somehow this erupted into an infirmary wide pillow fight. Despite the previous ‘revenge’ plans, even those from other dorms were playfully joining in, and not even aiming to hurt any of the savanaclaw members more than they already were. It didn’t last for very long, between the nurses coming in and yelling at them to Cheka’s bodyguards and retainers busting down the door in search of the young heir. 

The child quickly says goodbye and is taken away. Ace, Deuce, Grim, and that new prefect leave the infirmary shortly after. The prefect was apparently fine enough to go back to their dorm as soon as they woke up. Most everyone else would be spending the night in the infirmary, though. Ruggie didn’t feel like sleeping, after all the rest they had apparently already gotten, but they were still exhausted, how did that work?

“Go back to the dorm Jack, we’ll be fine,” Leona grumbled as the wolf hovered between their two beds. 

“But-”

“You heard him,” Ruggie added in, waving his hand. “We don’t need a babysitter, you know. Get lost.”

Jack grumbled but eventually complied, saying goodnight to his seniors before disappearing from the infirmary. The lights were turned off at some point, and the rest of the infirmary went quiet. Leona was still sitting on the edge of his bed instead of laying down on it, and Ruggie sighed as he moved to lay on his side. “Lay down, Leona-san.” He only got a grunt in reply. “ _ Leona _ ,” Ruggie said softer, but still with just as much force. Leona gave that glare again, no malice - only exhaustion behind the green hues. “Get some rest.”

Leona did the opposite of what he had asked, unsurprisingly. He stood up, shuffled a few steps forward so he was hovering over Ruggie. They moved to lay on their back, staring up at the dorm leader with a tired expression as Leona leaned over them. They batted some of Leona’s hair out of their face, and Leona took the opportunity to grab their wrist. “Hey-” Leona doesn’t offer any kind of response, staring at them - through them, it felt more like - silently. The longer it went on the more they became uncomfortable. Did he know what had actually happened before they passed out? No, there was no way he did. They had been far enough from the locker room…

But Jack had seen. Did that goody-two-shoes open his big mouth? It wouldn’t be the first time nor did he think it would be the last. “Well even if you don’t want to sleep, I do.” He lied. “Mind lettin’ go?” 

“Hm.” Leona answered in a hum and didn’t let go. Ruggie huffed, trying to pull his hand out of Leona’s grasp, only for it to become tighter.

“Hey, hey,  _ ow _ ! Watch it!” Ruggie whispered out, trying not to draw too much attention to them - people were still trying to sleep after all. Not to mention he really didn’t want to have to deal with the nurses again. It seemed to be enough at least because Leona finally let him go. He rubbed at his wrist, giving the best glare he could muster - which in all honesty wasn’t much of one at all. 

Leona had an almost melancholy look on his face. It was almost as bad at that pitiful look he saw on the older’s face earlier, before and after the battle with him. Who knew overblot was a real thing? Ruggie certainly didn’t believe it until he saw it with his own two eyes. But he had always been like that, seeing was believing, after all. 

Ruggie bit his lip. He didn’t know how to deal with a melancholy Leona. An angry Leona? No problem. A lazy Leona? The easiest thing in the world. A melancholy Leona? That was uncharted territory. 

But perhaps it shouldn’t be. After all, wasn’t it the build-up of such feelings that caused him to overblot to begin with? That caused him to go to such drastic measures? His left arm throbbed at the thought. What kind of friend was he, if he couldn’t even help Leona with these kinds of feelings? Because, yeah, they’re friends. Whether the two of them would ever admit it was another story. Leona’s family even only saw Ruggie as his retainer, though there had been constant clarification that he absolutely  _ wasn’t  _ that. But they saw someone care about Leona  _ once  _ and jumped to conclusions. How lonely was Leona really, to the point that his family didn’t believe that he could just have a friend? And only servants? 

He sighed, reaching out to grab a hold of Leona with his free hand. “C’mon you big baby.” Leona made a noise of protest, but couldn’t fight against Ruggie’s grip as he pulled the taller down onto the bed.

“Oi--!”

“Shut up and go to sleep,” Ruggie said, adjusting so Leona could lay on his back and them on their side. It was a bit of a tight squeeze, considering the size of the beds, but Ruggie had slept in worse positions - and Leona could fall asleep anywhere. “We’ll talk later.”

“....Yeah.” 

With the promise made, they both fell asleep rather quickly. 


	2. Punishment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “What happened to not picking fights you can’t win?” Leona asked, looking down at the other. He was looking everywhere but Leona, not surprising - but at least he answered.
> 
> “Humor me a bit.” 
> 
> Ruggie and Leona both have some frustrations and questionable ways of dealing with it.

It took a few days for all the Savanaclaw members to get discharged from the infirmary, but Leona and Ruggie the longest. They were there for a week, going stir crazy and driving the nurses up the wall. They watched everyone else get discharged, even people from other dorms. They were the only ones left by the end of the week. He would think it was a nice break if he hadn’t been in so much pain the whole time. Finally, he didn’t have to clean up the dorm or run errands for Leona - Jack was helping take care of that between classes. 

The pain was still a lot to handle. His arm wasn’t getting better as fast as he would have hoped. The pain had dulled somewhat, and some of the marks scarring had healed, but that was it. It was still hurting, he was still scarred. He couldn’t hide it from the nurses anymore, but at least they promised not to tell anyone about it - they simply thought it was a nasty wound from the tournament they had overlooked. He made them believe it was exactly that. 

Thankfully all the clothes that Jack had brought him to change into covered up the new bandages perfectly. He could have done without the homework that Jack was bringing them though. “They’re still expecting us to take all those exams when we’ve been out of classes for a week?” Ruggie sighed as he was packing up everything so they could head back to the dorm.

“Those exams are nothing.”

“Maybe for you,” Ruggie grumbled, putting their bag over their good shoulder. “I don’t want to hear it from the guy who thinks playing one-man chess is fun.” Maybe Leona was used to skipping classes and still acing tests, but Ruggie wasn’t. He’s going to have to study his ass off to make a decent score. 

“You know you’d get better at it if you just played more. I don’t mind a match or two.” Leona said, putting his own bag over his shoulder.

“I told you I-”

“Don’t pick fights you can’t win.” Leon finished his sentence for him, causing his eyebrow to twitch in annoyance. “But humor me a bit. Play a match with me tonight.”

They stare at each other in silence, but eventually, Ruggie falters. He knows they still need to talk, and he figures this is Leona’s roundabout way of mentioning that they could talk tonight. Even if it meant getting his ass handed to him at chess, they knew this had to happen. “Alright but I also need to study, and you’re helpin’ me.”

“Oh am I?” Leona raised an eyebrow at them and they shoved him closer to the door.

“Yes. Now c’mon, before Jack yaps our ears off.” Speaking of the devil, the wolf was waiting outside the infirmary for them. Ruggie couldn’t help but roll his eyes. He really was Mr.goody-two-shoes wasn’t he? It makes them want to throw up again. 

They rub a hand over their mouth and simply follow a few steps behind Jack and Leona. They hadn’t thrown up as much sand over the week, but still a worrying amount - being that he was still throwing up sand at all. He hadn’t told the nurses, or Leona, though the former might have been able to figure it out. They weren’t sure, nor did they care. They just wanted to eat a proper meal and take a nap before their big ‘talk’ with Leona. 

Walking through the mirror and to the Savanaclaw dorm was always a bit of whiplash. Getting hit by the sudden heatwave, and dry wind on his face. But it felt like home, and he could feel Leona relax beside him just as he was doing the same. Yeah, it was good to be back.

“Leona-san! Ruggie-san!” The dorm members were quickly gathering around. Well, so much for peace. “We got some of your favorite food over at the lounge!”

“Eh? Really?” Food always caught Ruggie’s attention, eyes sparkling as he shoved his bag at one of the underclassmen and started walking towards the lounge, hearing Leona sigh and walking after him. They didn’t just have their favorite food, they had a mini buffet set up for them! Maybe he should get injured more often. 

“Oi, what is all this?”

“Well, you’ve gone for a whole week…” One student spoke up.

“And you practically carried the team during the tournament!” Another chimed

Ruggie looked between the food and Leona. Obviously the dorm leader had mixed feelings about the whole thing, but at the heavy sigh that left his lips Ruggie grinned. The quiet acceptance was all he needed before he jumped right into the food. “Save some for me you glutton.” They heard Leona growl, but they only snickered in response. 

* * *

Night fell not long after the ‘party’ had started. Whatever food Ruggie hadn’t stolen from the table, and whatever Leona didn’t take himself, was swiped up from the table moments after. Typical, they said this was for the two of them but they couldn’t wait to get their paws on some food. Well, he’ll let them have it. They had managed not to burn down the dorm in the week he was gone, so that had to count for something. 

They were still walking on eggshells around him though, and that pissed him off. He couldn’t even squint in a direction without one of the dorm members running away with their tail between their legs. What, did he suddenly run a dorm full of cowards? Grumbling under his breath, he chugged the last of the drink he had been given before slamming it down on the table in front of him. All chatter in the room stopped and eyes were on him.

“Leona-san?” Ruggie was the only one brave enough to speak up, he gave a glance over at them before standing up.

“What a pain.” He pushed some of his hair behind his shoulder. “Alright, listen up.” He spoke a little louder, eyes scanning over the crowd to make sure all eyes were on him. Some seemed visibly nervous to make eye contact with him, others gave him their full attention. Well, it was enough. “I’m only going to say this once, I don’t regret what I did.” He said, putting his hands on his hips. Those too nervous to meet his gaze before now were staring at him, waiting for more of an explanation, no doubt. “What I did, I did because I thought it would get us ahead in the tournament. I made a plan of attack, and asked you all to follow through with it.” Well, all but one. A glance was given over to Jack, but he didn’t hold his gaze for long as he looked back over the masses. 

“We failed, and there were repercussions.” A glance is given to Ruggie, but again - he’s smart enough to keep his gaze. His lips twitched with a smirk before he continued. “No plan is perfect, and I could not have anticipated the whole overblot thing.” It pained him to say that aloud, and whispers traveled through the crowd when he did say it. Him admitting there was something he couldn’t anticipate was rare, he can’t even remember if he’s ever said something like that aloud in front of the whole dorm before. It is all he would say on that, though. Not everyone saw the incident, but they had all likely heard about it by now. Truthfully, his memory was foggy at best remembering the whole thing, but he knew enough to know he had messed up. It wouldn’t happen twice. “But I don’t regret my plan, I don’t regret anything.” His hands fall back down to his sides. “If anyone still has a problem with that, you’re welcome to challenge me to a fight. Everyone else in the tournament got their petty revenge, so you all can too if you want it.” ‘If you’re brave enough’, he wanted to add, but he didn’t need to. The threat was there whether or not it was spoken. Even in this weakened state, he could take anyone in this dorm on.

He glanced at Jack, expecting him to be the first one to stand up. But all he did was have a dumbfounded look on his face. Leona heard shuffling behind him and turned his head, seeing Ruggie as the only one standing. 

Leons turned around fully as they wiped the crumbs off of their face, giving a toothy grin afterward.”I’ll take you on.”

“Ruggie-san?! _Fighting_ Leona-san?!” He could hear the whispers in the crowd.

“He must still be pissed at Leona-san.”

“Of course! After what he did-”

“Hey,” Ruggie shouted out over the crowd, catching Leona off guard as he was just about to do the same. “Shut up.” They’re still grinning as they look back at Leona, hand on their hip. “So?”

“Didn’t take you the type for petty revenge, Ruggie.” Leona chuckled softly, and Ruggie snickered in reply. 

“There’s a first time for everything.” They state simply, pointing out to the magift stadium.

“This is gonna cut into your studying time.” Leona started casually walking towards the field, hands in his pockets. Ruggie walked beside him, putting his hands behind his head.

“And your chess time.” He countered.

The students parted like the sea, letting the two through. He could hear comments about how they were both too casual considering the circumstances. He had to agree, at least on Ruggie’s part. He had an idea Ruggie would want to at least punch him, at least. But it still didn’t make sense.

“What happened to not picking fights you can’t win?” Leona asked, looking down at the other. He was looking everywhere but Leona, not surprising - but at least he answered.

“Humor me a bit.” 

“Tch, you’re such a brat.” He said, putting his hand Ruggie’s head and ruffling his hair. The hyena whined, trying to pull his hand off as they kept walking. Who did he think he was, stealing his line like that?

* * *

  
Jack didn’t like this one bit. They were still healing! Yet no one even batted an eye and only followed like a hungry pack after the leader and vice. What was Ruggie thinking?! Jack follows after the crowd, and by the time he gets to the stadium they’ve already turned some of the lights on. Just enough to be able to see what was on the field in low light, not that most of the dorm couldn’t see in the dark anyway, it was probably more for the fighters benefit. 

The dorm members filled the stands, still whispering to themselves. 

“I can’t believe this is happening!”

“Ruggie has never stood up to Leona-san like this!”

“It’s exciting, isn’t it?”

Being a first-year, he wouldn’t know. But since coming to know Ruggie, he didn’t appear to be the rebellious type - at least when it came to Leona. Ruggie was obviously loyal to Leona, and Leona had a lot of faith in Ruggie as well. Their entire scheme for the tournament wouldn’t have worked without Ruggie’s magic, and they practically pulled off the plan single-handedly. All the other members of the team did was make sure Ruggie didn’t look suspicious. Leona wouldn’t put that much faith in just anyone. 

Ruggie was different, special, everyone in the dorm knew that. Newcomer or not.

Jack finally joined his peers in the stands, sitting close to the field despite the risk of stray magic possibly coming at him. He wanted to be close by in case he needed to step in. Not that he would want to ruin this, actually honorable, match. But they both were still injured, and he would stop them from making their wounds worse if need be.

“You sure you want to do this?” Leona asked, twirling his staff in his hand.

Jack could hear Ruggie’s trademark laugh. “Can’t very well disappoint the crowd now can I?” He tossed his pen up in the air and caught it. “What, scared I might actually kick your ass?”

“Tch. You wish.” 

Silence fell over the stadium. The two on the field plotting their first move, the crowd in the stands waiting with bated breath. Even Jack was on the edge of his seat, despite not wanting this fight to happen to begin with. He’s excited to see two seniors going at it but perhaps even more than that, he’s glad Ruggie is actually standing up for himself. He had suffered the most at Leona’s hand, both physically and emotionally. He still remembers clearly how he had yelled at Leona after he had said he was going to give up. Jack never thought he would see Ruggie truly angry before that moment. He remembered how heartbroken Ruggie had sounded, how desperately he fought down the sickness he had during the fight, during the beginning of the tournament. Ruggie was strong, and anyone who didn’t think so was a fool.

Ruggie finally made the first move. It was almost too fast for Jack to even catch it. The vice leader was always quick, so perhaps it shouldn’t have come as a surprise. The crowd erupted into cheers the second they realized the match had officially started. 

Considering they were both injured, they were holding up well against each other. Ruggie obviously was weaker than Leona, and arguably even more injured, but he was moving in such a way that he kept catching Leona off guard. He wasn’t powerful but he was fast, and his footwork made it that Leona had a hard time connecting hits. Soon Leona started aiming at his feet specifically, and that’s when the tide of the fight changed.

Leona overpowered Ruggie easily, and it was obvious he wasn’t putting much power behind his attacks. Either because it was natural for him to hold back or because he was injured. Jack almost stood from his seat as a bunch of spells collided around Ruggie, causing a huge dust cloud to cover the vice leader. But what actually gets him to stand from his seat was the fact that Ruggie bursts from the dust cloud, charging at Leona head-on. What were they thinking?!

Silence fell over the stands in anticipation, the only sounds echoing was the backlash of Leona’s spells, Ruggie yelling, and crack of bones.

Ruggie had charged forward, ignoring all magic being thrown at him, and punched Leona across the face. 

A roar of yelling came from behind Jack as his dormmates collectively lost their minds as the magic battle turned into a brawl. Jack stood against the railing, gripping it with a white-knuckled grip as he continued to watch. Ruggie was better at hand to hand combat than he originally thought they would be. There was no real form behind it, but he knew how to block, how to use his smaller form to his advantage, and kept landing hits- he even got Leona thrown onto his back once!

He shouldn’t be excited about this. He should be worried, he should be angry. But he’s biting his lip to stop a grin from breaking out over his face. This was somehow even more thrilling than the prospect of competing in the magift tournament. More engaging, more personal. He shouldn’t be enjoying this --

But upon seeing the looks on the combatant's faces, he found himself cheering along with the rest of his dorm. Ruggie and Leona were both smiling, having playful banter Jack couldn’t quite hear over the roar of his dormmates - but if they were enjoying themselves, it was fine right?

But the cheering died down when Ruggie was thrown onto his back, Leona keeping a foot down on his chest and pointing his staff at his neck. Both combatants were breathing heavily, clearly worn down in their already injured states. Ruggie looked as if he was about to try to struggle, then Leona’s foot went from their chest to their left arm, and Jack could just barely hear the hoarse shout Ruggie let out.

“Alright! Alright! Enough already! Leona!” Ruggie gasped, trying to pull his foot off of their arm, but he appeared to only apply more pressure, causing Ruggie to give another shout.

“Stop it! Leona-senpai!” Jack shouted, jumping over the railing a moment later. This is what he had been afraid of - Leona taking it too far again. At the very least, his shouting seemed to bring Leona back to the present, reminding him that all of the dorm was still watching. They must have gotten too engrossed in their fighting because as he approached the two, Ruggie eyes were wide and looking at the stands. It was like he had forgotten they had an audience.

Leona sighed heavily, backing off and letting Jack help Ruggie up to his feet. 

“Ruggie-senpai, are you alright?” Jack asked, careful to not touch the arm Ruggie was currently holding onto. In the dim light, it was almost missed, but there were tears brimming the vice leader’s eyes. Jack was about to growl at Leona, ask him what the hell he thought he was doing intentionally hurting Ruggie on a wound like that- but Ruggie tapped his chest with the back of his hand, causing him to look back down.

“I’m fine.” He quickly wiped the tears from his eyes and dropped his hand from his arm. He stepped up to Leona, who crossed his arms and tilted his head. “Time for you to kick my ass at chess. Let’s go.” 

Leona laughed but gave a wave to the rest of the dorm. “Alright, shows over!” There were cheers for Leona’s victory, and some dorm members approached to congratulate him and to compliment Ruggie on his fighting. Jack followed beside the shorter, making sure that no one got too close and crowded him - he could see Ruggie rolling his eyes over it, but he was smiling too. So it was fine, right?

He walked behind Ruggie and Leona as they entered the dorm, but soon Leona was pushing him back. “Wh-”

“Go to sleep pup,” Leona said, pushing him again. “Me and Ruggie have some other business to take care of.” Jack didn’t trust this, not one bit. It must have shown on his face because both Ruggie and Leona were rolling their eyes. “You really think we’re going to fight more like this?” The dorm leader asked, motioning between the two of them. 

It’s true that they were definitely weren’t in fighting shape - they had barely been in that shape when they got back to the dorm just a few hours ago. Clothes skewed, new bruises joining their old ones making their skin multiple different colors. Dried blood from bloody noses and scrapes from digging against the sand and rocks of the field. Frankly, they both looked like shit. 

Still, the fact that they had fought like that without being in peak condition for it made Jack worry. What would stop them from fighting in this condition too? He’s about to speak up when Ruggie is shoving him this time, snickering his signature laugh.

“C’mon, go to bed. We all know you’re a good pup that’s normally asleep by now.” Now that Ruggie mentioned it, he did feel exhausted. Maybe because the adrenaline from watching and stopping the fight had finally left his system. “It’s almost 11.”

“11? Really?” He mumbled, rubbing a hand down his face. He’s normally in bed by 10…

He looked between Ruggie and Leona again. They both looked annoyed at him, they clearly actually had business to take care of… “Fine. Goodnight, Ruggie-senpai, Leona-senpai.” He said, giving a bow of his head before walking past them and to his room. Before turning the corner he gives one last look at them, they’re speaking out of earshot right now, but at least Ruggie is smiling normally again. Jack lets a small smile of his own come to his face before going to his room.

* * *

“Checkmate.”

“ _Damn it._ ” 

Ruggie sighed, burying his face in his hands as Leona won another match. Leona handed him a notebook, and Ruggie peaked through his hands before begrudgingly taking it. He should have never bet on making notes for Leona in chess of all things. He opened it up to a blank page and put it next to his own notebook on top of his history textbook.

“Let’s take a break.”

Ruggie tapped his pencil against the notebooks. “I haven’t even started studying yet.”

“That’s your own fault.” 

Well….he was right. They had been putting it off with the chess matches. Ruggie sighed and put his pencil down, leaning back onto his right hand. 

They were both a mess- even after Leona let them use his shower to clean up. It was somehow amplified by the baggy clothes they were wearing - more of Leona’s hand-me-downs. He hadn’t thought twice when Leona threw the clothes at them before they entered the shower, most of their clothes were once Leona’s after all. The baggy clothes, the old bruises discoloration against the new bruises forming, cuts and gashes now covered up by band-aids of varying sizes or fully wrapped bandages, they were a certified mess.

Leona didn’t look much better, even after a shower as well. He had fewer bandages than they did, but still some He refused to wear more than a certain amount, only covering up the more serious gashes on his legs and hands from when he had been tossed around during the tournament and ones that had reopened during their brawl. Ruggie was a bit proud of that, they honestly didn’t expect to get so much of a scratch on him.

But man, punching him felt great.

“We haven’t brawled like that in a while,” Leona said, rubbing at his jaw as if he could tell what Ruggie was thinking. 

“Been what?” Ruggie tilted his head as he thought.”Two years? Three?”

“Something like that.” Leona shrugged, dropping his hand into his lap. “Forgot how hard you could really punch.”

Ruggie laughed. “Well, I hope you don’t forget, otherwise I’ll have to sock you again.”

Leona huffed, clearly trying not to laugh. A silence fell over them soon after. It was a little awkward, if only because they both knew they had to address the elephant in the room. Especially after the fight, Ruggie sat up and rubbed at his left arm at the thought. The baggy clothes covered up the scars perfectly, but Leona must have caught on from their time in the infirmary. Their left arm wasn’t hurt from the tournament, and there was only one reason it would be hurting - because he grabbed them when his unique magic was in effect. He knew it wasn’t long before Leona pieced those bits together. 

“Do you forgive me yet?” Leona broke the silence with the heaviest question. Ruggie’s eyebrow twitched. Of course he would do that--

“Oi, what’s with that start?” Ruggie sighed, rubbing at his temple.

“Well?”

Ruggie looked away for a moment, down at the studying materials next to him, then down at the chess set in front of them - still set up from their previous game. “I don’t know,” Ruggie admitted, not looking up at Leona and instead reached forward and grabbed his fallen king piece, turning it around in their hand. “You know how hard it is for me to trust people.” He put the king piece back in its starting position, then slowly started to fix up the board. Leona didn’t speak up, so he continued. “But I trust you - even if I haven’t forgiven you completely yet, I still trust you. Somewhere, deep down, I know you weren’t telling the truth back at dinner. You have regrets, you have concerns.” After Ruggie’s side of the board was finished, he started setting up Leona’s side. “You don’t have to tell me what they are, I get it.”

“What pisses me off is that you gave up so easily. That you trusted me, and I trusted you, and then threw that out the window the second we were caught. That wasn’t the overblot talking, that was you. I felt betrayed, like the one person I ended up trusting after all these years ended up being just as bad as the rest of them.” The words flowed so easily, now that the two of them were alone. Now that they had decided to talk. They didn’t sit down and talk like this often, in fact, he thinks it was after their last brawl that they had. They weren’t used to this intimacy, but somehow it felt... **right**. “We’re in this together, the two of us against the world. That’s what you told me, remember?” Ruggie finally looks up at Leona as he places the opposing king’s piece down on the board. Leona didn’t speak, so Ruggie sighs and pulls back his hand, leaning back once more. 

“I don’t really have any dreams for the future, you know. I don’t want my grandma to worry about me after graduation - but besides that? I don’t have anything I _really_ want to do. You gave me a goal to work towards, made promises of the future, so maybe I took it a little more personally than I should have. Obsessed over something that in the grand scheme of things, had little chance of working out for me anyway. I never did have the best luck.” Looking back on it, he found it kind of silly. Was he really staking his entire future on some sports tournament? Well, it was a way to survive, so why wouldn’t he go all in? He had to survive, it was the one thing he knew he could do, the one thing he was good at if nothing else in this unforgiving world. “But I’m mostly over it. It’s too much work, being angry all the time. I got most of my frustration out during the brawl.”

“But.” It wasn’t a question, he knew there was more. Ruggie sighed.

“ _But_ ,” Ruggie started, rubbing at the back of his head. “It’s gonna take a while before I can trust you the same way again.” They still trusted him, they didn’t lie about that. But they needed to take a few steps back. Make sure they didn’t get so close, didn’t get so invested, make sure they wouldn’t be hurt like that again - on multiple levels. 

“I could say the same.”

“Oi, what does that mean?” 

“What’s wrong with your arm?” Ruggie’s breath hitched, and he looked away quickly. Shit, shit, _shit_! “Answer me, Ruggie.”

“I…-” The words catch in his throat, and he can hear Leona rustling but he doesn’t dare move. Eventually, he’s forced to, as Leona is pulling on his right arm and making them look at him. “Hey-!”

“Show me, Ruggie.” It wasn’t his normal demanding tone, which is what really causes Ruggie to falter. Leona looks...tired. On more than just a physical level. 

“You’ll have to let go of me.” He mumbled, giving in finally. He’s tired too. 

After Leona lets go, they slowly pull the baggy shirt down. They didn’t need to remove it entirely to show the damage - since their shoulder and neck weren’t bandaged that’s all they had to show. They turned so their back was facing Leona so he could see the scars, and they felt a shiver run down their spine as they felt Leona’s fingers tracing the fissure shaped scars from their neck, down their shoulder, and to their arm.

“Guessing it’s worse on your arm.”

“Yeah,” Ruggie said with a shrug, pulling the shirt back over their shoulder. “I don’t feel like unwrapping it just to redo it again.”

“Right,” Leona mumbled, backing off and Ruggie turned back around. He watched Leona run a hand through his hair. He was obviously frustrated, which was surprising. “Jack…” Ruggie’s ears twitched. “He told me….you had been throwing up sand. That true?”

Ruggie could practically taste the sand on his tongue at the question. Damn it, so Jack did say something! “...Yeah.” 

“Are you still?”

“A little.” Ruggie slumped, rubbing a hand down his face. “It’s fuckin’ gross.”

“I bet.” Leona gave a pathetic excuse for a laugh. “Did you tell the nurses at the infirmary?”

“No. Bet they figured it out but I didn’t say anythin’.” Ruggie admitted. He’s too tired to lie. He looks up at Leona, he is giving him that frustrated look still. But he doesn’t say anything else on that and moves on with his interrogation.

“Why didn’t you tell **me**?”

They supposed that was the real question, wasn’t it? If he was truly angry, if he _really_ didn’t forgive Leona - then what was stopping him from telling Leona about this to make him feel even worse than he possibly already did? “Not like it would change anything,” Ruggie said, letting his hand fall into his lap. No, he would never pull that kind of move against Leona. Anyone else? Sure, making them feel awful would make him feel _great_. But not with Leona. Maybe part of him didn't want Leona to know because he was afraid of how Leona would react, or just scared of Leona himself. Or maybe, he was just trying to be a 'good friend', whatever that entailed. “What’s done is done.” No sooner than those words were out of his mouth, he gasps as Leona is grabbing him by the front of his shirt.

“It’s my magic damn it, I deserve to know what it does to people!” Leona growled, glaring down at them. 

The glare had no real malice behind it though. Instead Ruggie could see the forming of tears in Leona’s eyes. They weren’t falling, he was probably doing everything he possibly could to make sure they didn’t, but they were there and it was noticeable. He was mad, sure, but he’s more frustrated, upset - with himself probably most of all.

Ruggie sighed, able to pull himself out of Leona’s surprisingly weak grip and wrap his arms around the other’s shoulders. They pulled the lion down further, pulling him into a hug neither of them expected. They felt prideful in how much they were catching Leona off guard today, but they could bask in that later. It takes a moment, but Leona is weakly, and awkwardly, wrapping his arms around Ruggie as well. “I’m alive, aren’t I?”

“You almost weren’t-” It was barely above a whisper, Ruggie almost missed it. Almost. 

“But I am. It’ll take more than your magic to kill me.” Ruggie grinned against Leona’s shoulder. “I’m the survival expert, after all.” 

A weak laugh, but not as pathetic as his last one. Progress, at least. “Yeah, Yeah you’re right.” 

Ruggie pulls away and shoves Leona’s shoulder. “You good now?”

“...Yeah.” Leona yawned, rubbing at the side of his head. “But do me a favor, keep me posted on how it affects you.”

“Alright.” Ruggie agreed. He had no reason to keep it hidden from Leona at this point. “Anything else? While we’re in a sappy mood.” 

Leona bit back a laugh, but couldn’t hide the grin at the comment. “You were right, for once.” Ruggie made a small ‘hey!’ protest at the comment but Leona continued. “I do regret one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“That I almost lost you as a friend,” Leona said, getting up from where he was sitting to walk over to his bed.

Ruggie couldn’t help but stare at his retreating figure. Did he just...admit that **aloud**?! He must be dreaming. He was about to speak up when he noticed Leona flopping onto the bed. “Hey! You can’t just say that and then fall asleep! Leona-san!” Ruggie scrambled up to his feet, but by the time he reached the bed- Leona was definitely asleep. “I can’t believe this….” Ruggie ran a hand through his hair and sighed heavily. But maybe he shouldn't be surprised. Leona clearly wasn’t good at emotional conversation, so of course, he would take the easiest way out. They were somewhat thankful for it - they had spoken enough about their feelings to last another two or three years. 

They pull some of the blankets over Leona and turn down the lights, leaving one on near the pile on the floor where their study materials and the chessboard were sitting. They still had a long night ahead of them, especially now that he had to write two sets of notes. "You're going to be the death of me one way or another." Ruggie sighed, giving a glance back at Leona. He smiled and sat down, opening the first of many textbooks. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not good at fight scenes so I kind of glazed over it but I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!


End file.
